Peanut Butter Pie

How can you go wrong with peanut butter?  I love peanut butter.  My dog loves peanut butter.  (My dog REALLY loves peanut butter.)  Unless you're allergic to nuts, peanut butter can almost be considered a perfect food.  It can be used in savory dishes or sweet ones.  You can eat it by itself or turn it into fudge.  Or pie. Really anything in pie form is just the right thing to do.  I can't think of any time that would be a bad time for pie.  If anyone reading this is a Supernatural fan, then you'll understand the appeal of pie.

You can't go wrong with peanut butter.  Nor can you go wrong with pie.  So whoever thought of putting them together deserves a medal.  And I shall be forever grateful.

Peanut Butter Pie
adapted slightly from The Lady and Sons Too!

3 oz. Cream Cheese, softened
1 c. Powdered Sugar
1/2 c. Peanut Butter (creamy or chunky doesn't matter)
1/4 c. Evaporated Milk
1 1/2 c. Cool Whip
8-inch Graham Cracker Crust

Beat cream cheese until fluffy.
Mix in the powdered sugar and peanut butter.
Slowly add in the evaporated milk and combine until smooth.
Fold in the Cool Whip until well incorporated.
Pour into your graham cracker crust.
Place in the fridge for at least one hour or until chilled.
Eat and enjoy!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

First of all, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!  Mine was wonderful. Such good food with such good friends and family.  I had a great dinner with my husband and best friend - it may have only been the three of us but we had a HUGE spread!  Turkey, ham, stuffing, homemade mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce.  But let's be honest - you want to know what desserts we had.  Well, we had pumpkin gooey butter cake, my best friend's unreal pumpkin spice cake with homemade cream cheese frosting, and homemade apple pie (crust and all!).  The food was delicious!  And what's even better?  Leftover Thanksgiving food is always better the next day.

So now that you've been inundated with pumpkin recipes from every. single. blog around...

Chocolate.  Peanut Butter.  One of life's most wonderful combinations.  Was there even a chocolate-peanut butter combination before Reese's came into our lives?  I don't know.  But to whatever person invented this combination, I will forever be in your debt.  Having a bad day?  Give me chocolate and peanut butter (or pizza - that works too).  Husband driving you insane?  Don't reach for that frying pan to beat some sense into him with.  Reach for one of these cookies. Not only will your stomach thank you but so will your husband.  (And tell him if he's nice enough, you may even share them!)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
courtesy of The Deen Bros. Cookbook

2 1/2 c. All Purpose Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 tsp. Salt
1 1/4 c. Peanut Butter (I prefer creamy but you can use crunchy)
1 c. Butter, softened
1 1/2 c. Light Brown Sugar, packed
2/3 c. Sugar
2 Eggs
1 Tbsp. Light Corn Syrup
2 tsp. Vanilla
10 oz bag Chocolate Chips (I use milk but semi-sweet'll work too)

Preheat oven to 350.
Cream your peanut butter, butter, and sugars until its nice and fluffy.
Mix in your eggs, one at a time.
Beat in the corn syrup and vanilla.
Slowly mix in your flour, baking soda, and salt until everything is well combined.
Fold in the chocolate chips.
Using a spoon, drop the cookie dough 2 inches apart on a baking sheet.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until golden brown around the edges.
Cool.
Eat and enjoy!

Cookie jar from my favorite cookie company in Savannah, GA.

Simple Peanut Butter Cookies

Who doesn't love peanut butter cookies?  Besides people who have peanut allergies - the poor souls.  I could never imagine not having peanut butter ever again.  I just LOVE peanut butter!  I hope to make some peanut butter balls in the future (and if you grew up in the South, you should know what peanut butter balls are - if you don't, I feel terribly sorry for you because you don't know what you're missing)... *drools*  Okay, back to cookies!  This recipe has only FOUR, yes, four, ingredients!  And I can pretty much guarantee that you have all the ingredients in your pantry.  Therefore, you have absolutely no reason whatsoever to not make these cookies immediately.  So, go, get to it!  What's that?  You need the recipe?  Read on...

Simple Peanut Butter Cookies
courtesy of The Lady and Sons, Too!

1 c. Peanut Butter (whether you use creamy or crunchy is totally up to you.  I used creamy.)
1 c. Sugar
1 Egg
1 tsp. Vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350.
In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients and mix well.
Using a cookie scoop or a spoon, roll your dough into balls about the size of walnuts (if you use a cookie scoop, this will make this step just fly by!).
Put the cookie dough onto a cookie sheet.
Using a fork, make a crisscross design on the tops of each cookie, squishing them down.
Bake for 12 minutes.
Try not to burn your mouth by trying the hot cookies :)

(Don't you just love my Coldplay Mylo Xyloto mug??  I got it when me, Ryan, and Erin went to their concert in Charlotte back in July.  I love it.)

Peanut Butter S'mores Bars

I have something terrible to admit to everyone.  I had my first s'more when I was 25 years old.  I'm 26 now.  My best friend, Erin, was making them in her oven and gave me one.  I've been hooked ever since!  I wanted to find a s'more in bar form.  The marshmallow and chocolate were just a little too messy for me (Erin calls me the world's cleanest cook - I cannot stand a mess while I cook or eat!).  Off I went on a google search for a s'mores bar.  I found quite a few of them, some better than others.  This particular recipe intrigued me simply because I love peanut butter.  Anything with peanut butter is worth trying in my book.  Ryan wasn't too crazy about this recipe but I sure was!

Peanut Butter S'mores Bars
courtesy of myrecipes.com

1 c. Brown Sugar
1/2 c. Peanut Butter (I used creamy but you can use crunchy if that's your cup of tea)
2 T. Butter
1/2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
2 Egg Whites
1 1/2 c. Self-Rising Flour
1 Jar of Marshmallow Creme
2/3 c. Chocolate Chips (I used mini choc chips!)
Cooking Spray

Preheat oven to 350.
Combine the first five ingredients (through egg whites) in a bowl and beat until combined.
Stir in your flour.
Press into a 9x13 pan that's been coated with cooking spray.
Top with marshmallow creme and sprinkle with the chocolate chips.
Bake for 20 to 22 minutes or until the base of the s'more is done!
(Note:  I had a bit of trouble with the center of these.  You may want to par-bake the peanut butter crust for a few minutes before adding the marshmallow creme.  The marshmallow creme prevented the center from cooking completely.  If you do that, remember to reduce your remaining cooking time!)

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Cookies

Reese's got it right - chocolate and peanut butter just go together.  Like peas and carrots.  Like Forrest Gump and Jenny (that's for you, Ruth Ann!).  Honestly, those two things are perfect for one other.  There really is nothing more that can be said about these cookies except that they are delicious!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
courtesy of Nestle Toll House All-Time Favorite Cookie and Baking Recipes


2 1/4 c. All Purpose Flour
2/3 c. Baking Cocoa
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 c. Butter, softened (I use salted butter.  If you only have unsalted, add 1/4 tsp. salt)
3/4 c. Sugar
2/3 c. Brown Sugar, packed
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
2 Eggs
Peanut Butter Chips (I'm going to let you use your own judgment here.  I think the original measurement of an entire package is way too much so I usually use 1/2 the bag but you can add as much or as little as you like!)

Preheat oven to 350.
Combine flour, cocoa, and baking soda in a bowl.
Beat butter, both sugars, and vanilla until creamy.
Add eggs to the butter mixture, beating well after each addition.
Gradually beat into flour mixture.
Stir in your peanut butter chips.
Measure out your cookies and place onto an ungreased baking sheet.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until centers are set (I usually go for 8 minutes but I like my cookies really soft!).
Let stand on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.

Nice picture, huh?  Yep, looks nice.  Want to see what happened just moments before?

Yep.  That's my husband's hand.  He couldn't wait for me to finish taking my picture before reaching for a warm cookie (okay, who can resist a warm cookie?).  Once he got his cookie, I was able to take my nice, lovely picture!

Post edited to add the following:

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